And retail pharmacy operators like Walgreens have adjusted their messaging to match that heightened demand for cough and cold products. The Forbes article featured a Walgreens advertisement that listed all the products a flu sufferer might need — tissues, lozenges, medicine, sanitizer and lip balm.

The article also acknowledged retail pharmacy as a destination for flu shots. Walgreens, in particular, inoculated as many patients from the flu in January as they typically do in October — the peak of the flu-shot giving season — the retailer told the business journal.

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